Vanessa Williams: 'You Have No Idea'

As a teen, Vanessa Williams enjoyed performing, singing, dancing and, like a typical teen, rankling her no-nonsense mother, Helen. In 1983, Williams never imagined she would be crowned the first African American Miss America — or the fallout when her Playboy past was revealed. And this was not her only secret. Williams had also endured childhood molestation and, in high school, an unplanned pregnancy that ended in abortion. … Back to Article

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